The related art includes accelerometers of the piezo electric, silicon piezo resistive and capacitive kinds. However, there has been a need for an advanced-technology, near-chip-size accelerometer with high reliability and long-term accuracy. The present invention is a response to that need. The invention, the electrostatic silicon accelerometer, is a solid state accelerometer having the capabilities of complementing future inertial navigational systems based on either ring laser or fiber optic gyroscopes. The greatest problem plaguing present-day accelerometers is long term drift that is virtually eliminated by the present invention. The invention has exceptional stability in terms of accuracy over extended periods of time, thereby eschewing the typical periodic calibrations necessary for related-art accelerometers. The major factor contributing to such stability is the single-material construction of the accelerometer.